Council accepts Mitchell's resignation, appoints Osborn

Wednesday

The Glen Rose City Council on Monday accepted Mayor Pro Tem Barbara Mitchell’s resignation and appointed Tom Osborn to fill the position until next year’s May city election.

Osborn is the son of Dorothy Jo Osborn and the late Garland Hurchel "Osy" Osborn of Glen Rose. He previously has lived in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and regularly attends city council meetings.

When the Reporter called Osborn at home and asked for biographical information in case some citizens might want to know more about him, he said, "The people who know me, know me. I have no further comment." Then he hung up.

The council position came open after Mitchell submitted a letter of resignation on Sept. 28, saying that she was “very disheartened with politics in our town.”

“It is a shame we can’t disagree without personal attack,” Mitchell wrote. “If it means we have to destroy lives to make a point, I don’t want to be a part of that kind of politics. I am sorry if I let you down but my place is with my family who have suffered because of this.”

Mitchell also expressed her “deepest appreciation to council and all city staff for the help and friendship they have given me.”

Councilman Bob Stricklin had suggested nominating the people who ran for the council during the last election as candidates to replace Mitchell. In the May election, former council member Dr. Rocky Terry received the next highest number of votes, followed by Ken Prikryl and Dianne Gruber.

Stricklin said he had talked to Terry, who “is not interested at this time,” and also to Prikryl and Gruber, both of whom said they would serve.

Councilman Chris Bryant also said two people had expressed interest to him — Osborn and Gruber.

The interim council member will have a “short stretch to the next election,” Bryant noted. “They will have to prove themselves” quickly if they’re looking to be elected.

Stricklin then made a motion to nominate Prikryl. Councilwoman Sue Oldenburg, who serves on the Glen Rose Economic Development Corp. with Prikryl, seconded the motion.

When Miller called for a vote, Stricklin and Oldenburg voted for Prikryl, with Bryant and Martin voting against. Miller did not vote.

“The motion dies for a lack of a majority,” she said.

Martin then said that he wanted to nominate someone with “conservative values” and proposed Osborn, who had indicated he planned to run for the council in the next election.

The vote again was 2-2, with Bryant and Martin in favor of Osborn and Stricklin and Oldenburg against. Miller broke the tie and voted for Osborn.

The mayor also nominated Martin to become mayor pro tem “since he’s been mayor before.” The council approved him unanimously.

The council also discussed the open position of Oakdale Park manager, which is being advertised. Stricklin, who had wanted to see more detail in the job description, had given council members a copy of the job description of a park manager in Grapevine.

Miller questioned some of the information on that description, including knowledge of plumbing and carpentry.

"To me, that's kind of a worker, that's not a manager," she said. "We have people on staff who can come in and do that."

Miller described the manager as someone who should be able to work with the city, Convention & Visitors Bureau and Glen Rose/Somervell County Chamber of Commerce.